Central Vermont Public Service has initiated a stock repurchase program of about 2.25 million shares. The Rutland, Vt.-based power company is using proceeds from the recent sale of wind firm Catamount Energy Corporation, says Dale Rocheleau, senior v.p. for legal and public affairs. He says about $52 million after tax was netted from the sale and Central Vermont wanted to reward shareholders by redistributing proceeds. Central Vermont maintains a debt-to-equity ratio of 40:60.

The buyback started a few weeks ago and the aim is to complete it next week. The program is structured as a reverse Dutch auction in which the company looks to buy back shares between $20.50-22.50. The shares were trading at $21.41 today. New York-based New Harbor is the company's financial advisor. A call to John Beatty, managing director at New Harbor, was not returned.

Jeanny Silva, an analyst at Standard & Poor's in New York, says buybacks are generally bad from a credit perspective but not in this instance given that it is being funded from a sale.

Catamount was sold to Diamond Castle Holdings, a private equity firm (PFR, 10/24).